


Hurry Up and Save Me

by vsky949



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Friendship/Love, Love, M/M, Romance, Soul Bond, otp, soul mates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-01
Updated: 2013-06-01
Packaged: 2017-12-13 16:35:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/826426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vsky949/pseuds/vsky949
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU. Zayn is happy; he's popular at school and that is all that matters. Not those soft, stupid, lovely brown eyes that fill his mind every minute. Those definitely don't matter.<br/>Except they really, really do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hurry Up and Save Me

**Author's Note:**

> Idk what really inspired this. The title is from my favorite childhood movie, Another Cinderella Story. My friends used it to make a dance for our performance and the title kind of just brought this idea forward? Idk but hope you like it! Let me know what you think by commenting or kudoing please. :)
> 
> Oh, and the lyrics/song mentioned inside the story is Rescue by The Summer Set. (Love them so effing much!)

The smell of daisies and roses filled the air. The trees blossomed, filled with green leaves and some with little flowers as well.

This was Zayn’s favorite place. He was so upset when his parents first told him they were going to move. It wasn’t the fact that he was leaving stuff behind, because he wasn’t. He didn’t really have any friends or actual ties to Bradford.

But that was the reason he didn't want to move. Yes, he might not be popular there but he was used to that. He was used to the idea and knew how to handle it. In a new place with new surroundings and new people, he didn't know what might happen.

The only person he would miss would be Liam. He and Liam had been best friends since their first year of school, when Zayn had woken up from a sneaky nap to find a jacket on his shoulders and Liam looking at him. He blushed and asked Liam if it was his. Liam said yes but when Zayn tried to hand it back, he shook his head and told Zayn to keep it.

They became pretty inseparable after that. Liam was the only one who bothered to get to know Zayn’s quiet persona. He was there to listen and hold Zayn when the world was too much for him.

He was always there; through the good and the bad, the easy and the hard. In a result of that, it both hurt and helped Zayn.

It helped him because no one else was ever there for him. There was no one who would stay up with him and encourage him. He needed someone to do that for him and Liam decided to take that spot himself.

But it also hurt that he had Liam. Everywhere he went, there was Liam. While he was out and girls were hitting on him, Liam’s lovely brown eyes would be there in his mind. And when Liam smiled tightly and asked him why he hadn’t asked any girl out, he simply shrugged and said he didn't see any special girl.

Zayn still remembers when he left Liam. He had stayed over Zayn’s house, both of them cuddled up on a blanket in his backyard. Zayn’s head was on Liam’s chest, his arms wrapped around Liam’s waist. Liam raised his hand and interlaced his fingers with Zayn’s. He kissed Zayn’s forehead and told him he better keep in touch. Zayn didn't respond, just hummed in acknowledgement.

The next morning, Zayn and Liam held hands until Zayn entered his car. He saw Liam’s figure, waving in front of what used to be his house, until both it and he disappeared. Zayn sighed and closed his eyes, trying to keep his tears in.

After staying on his bed for the first couple of days after he moved, ignoring everyone except Liam’s texts and calls, Zayn decided he needed to stop. His first day at his new school was the next day and if he wanted to be happy, he would need to make himself fit in. So, he sucked it up, went out, bought himself new clothes, and basically figured out the Zayn he wanted to be here.

The next day at school, he arrived in a pair of ripped jeans, a leather jacket over a white T-shirt, combat boots, and his hair gelled up in a nice quiff. People came up to him all day long, asking him questions. He was invited to at least three different tables that one day for lunch.

The attention was calling for Zayn and he loved it. And the fact that most of the student body was also cool with homosexuality made him feel like he was on top of the world. Soon after that, he was the definition of a bad boy, and he didn't want it any other way.

In a result of this, it caused his and Liam’s friendship to dwindle. Liam tried very hard to keep the long distance working, but Zayn didn’t. Zayn tried and tried but at night, he still thought of Liam’s arms holding him, his nature filled scent tickling his smell, his soft voice lulling him to sleep, and worst of all, his brown eyes filled with fondness looking down at him.

It killed Zayn that although he wanted to get over Liam, which he felt would happen if he ignored him, his infatuation continued.

He stopped answering Liam’s texts and calls, he ignored emails and video chats; he did everything in his power to get the point across to Liam. After a while, Liam stopped bothering as much until it had been weeks since they spoke, maybe even months. Although Zayn knew Liam tried and he was the one who was being difficult, it hurt to know Liam wasn’t trying anymore.

But he put all those feelings behind him and focused on trying and pretending to be happy in school.

That is, until Zayn finally saw those brown eyes again.

\--

It had been a regular day at school for Zayn. He had heard all day that there was a new kid, yet he wasn’t able to see him, due to the fact he had to serve detention with his friend Louis for a prank they pulled at the beginning of the week.

He was walking home afterwards when a voice called his name from behind.

“Zayn?”

He turned around, only to be stunned. “Li!?”

Liam smiled and nodded. Zayn used that time to look him up and down. He didn’t look exactly how Zayn left him, yet it wasn’t much different either. His shoulders were broader, his hair was a little longer, and his torso was stretched a bit more. He was wearing a T- shirt and a pair of skinny jeans, which Zayn knew he would go home to strip off of because Liam used to hate wearing jeans, usually opting for a pair of basketball shorts. Zayn reached Liam's face again and noticed a blush on his cheeks and his lip in between his teeth.

"What are you doing here?" Zayn asked.

Liam shrugged nonchalantly. "My dad was relocated for his work. My mom didn’t want to move because of her job so they gave me the option of either staying or moving with my dad, and I decided on the latter."

Zayn didn’t respond, just stared at Liam the whole time. His emotions had been very unstable ever since he left; since he and Liam broke apart. No one was there to tell him it was okay and help him figure out what was wrong. And seeing Liam in front of him, after god knows how long, looking as good as ever only made him more confused and angry.

"Oh," Zayn finally responded, "that's cool. Umm, well it was great seeing you but I really got to head home. I'll see you Liam." He didn't wait for Liam's reply, just turned right around and walked down the pathway to his house.

The next day, Zayn went out of his way to stay away from Liam. If he saw Liam first, he would turn and go around, even if it made him late to his classes. If Liam saw him first and tried to catch his attention, Zayn would just nod at his general direction and keep conversation with his friends. He even made sure to get to lunch late so he could sit with his friends and not have Liam try to sit with him. Zayn felt like such a prick but he couldn’t bring himself to change what he worked so hard in for the last months. He is happy with what he has and that doesn’t need to include Liam.

Or at least, that's what he tells himself even when Liam is the last thought he thinks before he falls asleep.

\--

The beautiful scenery in front of Zayn has always found a way to calm him. Maybe it's the scent he swears he has smelled on someone else's body. Maybe it's the way the trunks of the trees here never seem to age, but always stay the simple brown color that fill his brain when he closes his eyes. Everything here just makes him feel at home.

Yet Zayn can't seem to become contempt. His legs are shaking, his fingers are trembling, and his breath his staggering out of control. He doesn’t understand what's wrong.

Maybe it's all the emotions he has kept bottled up.

Maybe it's for all those times he's looked in the mirror and wondered what happened.

Maybe it's the memories of not fitting in for who he is, ever in life.

Maybe it's because he doesn't know if his younger self was looking at him, if he would be proud or not.

Maybe it's because the one person who knew what he thought before he said it and knew the perfect way to make him stop and breathe and relax, is here with him yet Zayn isn't letting him in.

And he doesn’t understand why he isn’t.

He closes his eyes as his hands clench around a patch of dirt at his side and pulls. He pulls until pieces of grass are flowing past him in the wind and his tears are a mixture of sadness and aggravation.

He can hear leaves crunching but ignores it, thinking it's just a squirrel walking on the fallen autumn leaves.

Suddenly, there's a hand pulling at his clench fist until it becomes an open palm. Another hand repeats the action to the other. Zayn's breath hitches but he keeps eyes closed, not wanting to disturb the wonderful memory of what used to be. The hands on his hands push him up until he's almost sitting. He feels the presence of the other person sit next to him. The person pulls him slightly until Zayn is practically sitting on them. One hand rubs at Zayn's leg comfortably; the right one because Zayn has a weird obsession with his right leg instead of his left leg. The other hand goes on the back of Zayn's neck, playing with the little hairs there and scraping the skin because Zayn doesn’t like it when people touch his hair without permission.

Although, thinking about it, he would let those hands do anything.

Zayn wraps his arms around the person's waist and hides his face in the strong torso. He breathes in, smiling when he can still catch the smell of fresh trees mixed with a bit of sweat. He smiles as the tears finally, _finally_ fall after months of waiting.

He cries and cries, but makes no sound. The hands are still rubbing comfortably against his body and he can hear a soft voice by his ear, singing to him.

_"When your ups and downs,_

_Spin you round and round again_

_If you're dizzy now,_

_And your world is caving in_

_I'll come to your rescue"_

His tears subdue until he doesn’t think he'll be able to cry for another pair of months. The silence elongates but Zayn doesn’t mind. It reminds him of fitting in again; of knowing where you belong, and Zayn would engulf in that silence all the time if he could.

Suddenly, Liam's voice interrupts him. "You okay babe?"

Zayn smiles and pulls back to look at Liam. He nods, not sure if he should trust his voice or not. Liam looks at him for a long moment, obviously turning Zayn's words in his head to figure out if he believes it or not.

Zayn rolls his eyes and clears his throat. "I'm fine Li." Zayn says, happy his voice sounds practically normal.

Liam nods. "Okay. Well, I'm glad you are then."

Zayn's smile falters. "You shouldnt be." He whispers.

Liam eyebrows furrow and he uses his thumb to push Zayn's chin up so their eyes can meet. "Excuse me?" He asks.

Zayn sighs. "I've practically ignored you ever since I left and here you are, being as nice as always, when I have no right to deserve it.

Liam smiles fondly at Zayn. "Zee, I know you've been, umm, ignoring me I guess. And I'm not going to lie, it hurts pretty badly. But that doesn’t change the fact that you are my best friend and I know you better than everyone else. They may be fooled by that cocky, bad boy exterior but I know the real you; the one who can't sleep without music on and can get easily paranoid. And I also know that sometimes, all you need is a good cry and someone to hold you."

Zayn doesn’t say anything, just takes it all in. Liam uses this time to use the hand on Zayn's chin and run it along his face, grazing his cheek with the tip and causing a shiver to run through Zayn’s body. Liam smiles and leans it a little bit more, never breaking eye contact with Zayn.

"I don't know the exact reason why you stopped talking to me Zee, but I know that whatever it was, I will forgive you. I know you were scared when you came and although you have this happy and excited persona around you, you've needed someone with you. You've needed me."

Zayn's eyes search Liam's and he barely has enough time to close his eyes and part his lips slightly when Liam leans in fully to connect their lips. They move softly with each other, not getting passionate though they both know it would be so hot.

In some way, this is just as hot. This what Zayn wants. He wants Liam; he wants someone who can hold him and tell him everything will be okay. He needs someone who can lift the burden of him if needed but be there to keep him on his feet as well.

He might've always known but he just didn’t know how to admit it; the fact that he always had that. He always had Liam with him. He was always the one to be there for him.

Zayn thought Liam would be the thing to destroy him.

It turns out, he's also the thing that might just save him.


End file.
